The windmill at Peotone provided a variety of grain products. Fine wheat, rye and buckwheat flours, as well as cornmeal were common products the grist mill offered. The local livestock industry depended upon the mill as its primary source for feed. Thus, the mill's busiest time of year was during the autumn when livestock farmers would stock up for the winter with the mill's freshly ground grain products. The mill's surplus product was stored in a building that was once attached to west side of the windmill. Income for Rathje came from a "toll" which the mill charged. The toll was essentially a fraction of the finished product, these tolls were governed by state laws. In 1885 the wind powered grist mill was switched over to steam power. Tales handed down through the Rathje family speak of the windmill's sails rotting and cite this as the reason for the change over to steam